I was wondering about other photographers experiences good or bad with Elinchrom gear ?

Of interest is the Ranger battery gear and the large packs.What's the LL verdict ?[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=174498\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

I am a bit ignorant about strobes - I ve only ever owned elly classics and a ranger pack - so dont really know the competition

I like the fact that the modifier fittings are the same for both the battery, monobloc and pack systems

I think not all bowens fit each other but am not sure

Of the seven monoblocs I own two are not functioning and one overheated on a catalogue shoot when blapping a way - it came on back after a while (thermal cutout) the oldest monobloc is probably 7 years so that isnt too bad I suppose

I had one pair blown down an aircraft hanger by a helicopter downwash - they survived that unlike the stands - they literally took off and flew away

The Ranger - I have the older one which is not asymetric - I now realise that an asymetric pack is very valuable

What I like about the 'classic' mono blocs is that they work with invotronix battereis and off my petrol generator - digital heads will struggle on poor quality power like this

The big downer is they are ALL TOO BRIGHT !

If you want to shoot and balance with ambient without using a tripod and small aperture

When I say too bright Im talking about putting a softbox just out of shot on a 2/3rds portrait and hoping for 5.6 at 100 you get more like f16 - yuk

Or using the snoot as a hairlight - it has to be too far away for good control

I have had to custom ND my softboxes in a very fire hazardous manner to cut the light

I would love flashes that go down to 1/256 setting - maybe thats just me

I think you pay your money and take your pick elly is not as good as systems twice the price !

If we talk about the portable powerpacks I have a direct comparison as I also own a Profoto B2R 1200 with the built in Pocket Wizard. The built in pocket wizard is about the only feature I like about the Profoto beside it's speed and it's sexy professional look.

Some downsides I see with the Profoto B2R:***************************************- It's VERY heavy at 12 kg (That's amazing 50% more weight than the Elinchrom Ranger Speed at 8 kg)- Battery life is disappointing to me (comparing to the Elinchrom Ranger)- Replacement batteries are WAY TO EXPENSIVE and heavy too- It's noisy (whining noise from a fan inside the box that has no holes for ventilation (?!)- Controls are not visible out in the dark- Sockets are open and rain is a problem- The modeling light goes through the battery in 10-20 minutes (required to focus in the dark at times)- Modeling light is flashing/flickering annoyingly to the models- The B2R needs to be put down on it's side to give access to the two handles that will release the battery. These handles are on the botton of the pack and stand in the dirt all day long). They are also kinda silly to grab and pull- The battery can only be inserted exactly one way. If you have it wrong by 180° you only realize when it doesn't go in all the way. - Power setting depends on to many variables (depending on the big power dial, the small power dial, a switch, two sockets (depending on the switch and amount of heads the output changes) -> so you need to constantly calculate the power.- Not even the reps of the national dealer for Profoto could tell me right away how the power is calculated when I changed the switches and dials -> I had to explain it to them after I got it. I still don't understand how they get to the full 8 stops of adjustment. If I calculate I would think the controls would operate a range of 9 Stops.- No display for power- Heads not compatible with other current powerpacks like an Acute, AcuteB or D4- Ringflash not compatible either!- Only has a handgrip but no shoulderstrap (you can have a basic bag for probably around 300$ though)- All profoto equipment is insanely expensive- Profoto doesn't seem like a kit but rather like a collection of pieces that don't belong together that Profoto purchases from OEM's to just put it's stickers onto. That may be the reason why the compatibility is to terrible between packs (and heads)- I waited about 6 month on the diffusor for the proring ringflash after full payment- I wanted to get a new AcuteB600 as they are lighter and would have had to get all new flashheads, and also the ringflash as they are not compatible with the B2R -> so a big and a small portable powerpack will come at a price- I hate the Profoto light modifier mount. I HATE IT. You never get the sweet spot outdoor. Either you have a donut light or a highlight in the center. The movable mounting may be nice in theory but outside the studio it's awful. And in the studio it's one more thing that you need to check and keep in mind. Probably the Profoto guys like to eat marmalade.

The points about the Elinchrom Ranger Speeds (with flashheads A) I have:**************************************************************************- Lightweight at 8kg- Very powerful at 1100 Ws -> I seem to usually dial down around 3-4 stops for outside work and that gives me probably over 2000 flashes on a fresh battery- I actually never ran out of power. Never happened. Although I'm paranoid and sometimes change the Ranger to not risk to stay without flash-power when shooting against the sun all day long- Good recycle times -> I never feel waiting regardless of the camera I shoot- Very good battery life. One battery keeps me running usually for an entire day. - Replacement batteries are less than half price of Profotos over here in Europe. Often you can ask your dealer for a rebate and if he denies you say (ok then include another battery for free). Always worked for me :-)- No noise beside the ready-beep that certainly can be turned off- Controls are illuminated. - Controls are very easy to operate and clear (buttons have indicators if function turned on/off, power is displayed in 1/10 stops digitally) There is a button to increase power and one to decrease. Can't get any easier than that. No need to read manuals (you need to do that with the Profoto to fully understand it as)- The Ranger speed has two sockets and using both will give both 50% of the power you dial-in.- Sockets have caps and I've been shooting in crazy rain and snow without a single problem- Modeling light is 100 Ws I think and that's plenty to allow you to focus and see the lights effect in the studio or dark/shadow. On the other hand side not even 500 Ws will give you an idea how your light will look on a sunny day so the 250 Ws of the Profoto are a waste of battery life.- The battery change is really so straight forward it's incredible. It takes less than 5 seconds and leaves you with clean hands. You just press two buttons on the sides of the Ranger and the battery comes out on the bottom as soon as you lift the unit. Then you just put it over a fresh battery and press it down. I'd be amazed if I couldn't get this done in 2 seconds !- And the Ranger doesn't mind if you put the battery in this way or turn it by 180 degrees. - Heads are compatible with other Elinchrom power packs (you need an adapter/cable though). - The ranger has a convinient shoulder-strap but no handle. (I made handles myself that go to the holes that hold the shoulderstrap)- Elinchrom has a new wireless triggering system that is supposed to be good but I just stick with the pocket wizards- Two Elinchrom Ranger Speed are cheaper here around than one Profoto B2R and honestly the Profoto I use hardly ever at all. It's just inconvinient to me and provides no value over the Ranger.

Just make sure you take the Elinchrom A flashheads. These have faster flash durations compared to the S heads (S is derrived from STANDARD and not SPEED as one could think).

My absolute favourite light modifier to take abroad on outdoor or location assignments is the 70cm Beautydish with a white sock (no deflectors). The light is amazingly beautiful and so versatile. It certainly also works great inside the studio. It gives me a quality of light I just can't get out of the Profoto for digital capture. Others may feel different I'm sure but with the Canon 1Ds MK2 for example the skin looks flat with the Profoto while the Elinchrom gives it a special depth and nicer color in my opinion.

For the studio the 190cm Octabox is really nice too and at times I take it on location as well. Honestly... it takes me less than a minute to set it up. It's basicly like an umbrella. And it's ultralight to carry and comes in a handy bag (for location work bring weights). So you take it out of the bag, put it onto a lightstand, open it up like an umbrella, put a light into it (Ranger or power pack light), ready to go. Guaranteed less than a minute. If you want to get into the Guiness book of records you would probably have to beat a time around 20-30 seconds. If you want you can add the diffusion cloth and that will take you another 30 seconds to put on.

Most of the softboxes and Oktas work like umbrellas. BRILLIANT. LOVE IT. No f*ckin adapter plate you need to insert steel sticks into and need gloves to take apart (Profoto wink wink).

For wall socket powered packs I use the Elinchrom Digital 1200 RX. I never put more than one head onto one pack as I have enough packs so I never even considered getting the bigger packs like the 2400Ws or the 3000Ws etc. Usually bigger packs are slower too. And if I have a power issue it's always that I have TO MUCH power not the opposite. Again in theory it would be nice to have one pack and plug all the heads into it. In real life however you don't want to run cables from both sides of the set to one pack so you take two. Now you can power 4 heads. As said I have one power pack per head as that somewhat helps me with the way I work. I don't want to check which cable goes to which head to adjust power. One head, one pack and the pack sits next to the light.

Best thing is that you get 4 Elinchrom 1200 RX for the price of one bigger Profoto D4!

I'm sorry that I sound like a fanboy but I'm really finally happy about my lights after going through bad times with Profoto, Balcar, Broncolor, etc.

I guess Elinchrom should work on their marketing and the sexyness of the equipment. Painting everything black and change the font would be a start :-)

I've been exremely happy with my Elinchrom kit. I'm using Digital Style 1200RX monoblocs and a 2400 RX pack and Digital SE heads. I primarily shoot in multi-shot mode with a mfdb. The color and luminance consistency is rock-solid. I will probably acquire a Ranger at some point for location work. In terms of value versus performance, I don't think there's a better solution out there. I had considered Broncolor, but the cost was too high. I hear that the octoboxes are stellar.

The gear is good, but the back-up here in Australia is lacking.One example would be waiting for three months to get an arm for a softbox replaced.

Profoto is too expensive here to not have good back-up from the dealer IMO.

I also have a good Broncolor set-up based around a couple of C200's and I think I might be better off with just one brand.For all it's other good qualities Bron don't make a great battery pack.[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=174682\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

HiThe new Broncolor battery pack is one of the best on the market. very quick recycle & plug into the mains and you have a fast floor pack. Personally I think the Bron has the edge over the Profoto. I use Profoto & they are industry standard in NY & LA in rentals. Sun has a Bron new battery on sale right now, I would check it out. I also think the Bron has a better beauty dish than Profoto.Denis